GULF SHORES, Ala. - This story is about twelve pairs of knitted socks sent to a sailor in the Pacific in World War II and a shoebox full of letters from the  sailor in the Pacific in World War II. These socks were among the effects of Ensign Neil Simonsen who was killed aboard the USS Shubrick by a Japanese Kamikaze plane May 29, 1945. The items, among others, were sent to his widow Sgt. Martha Voigt Simonsen, United States Marine Corps Women’s Reserve (USMCWR) in Arlington,  Virginia.

Neil and Martha had been married only since November of 1944 and had managed to visit his home in Davenport,  Iowa. It was love at first and love forever for the young couple. After the War Martha remarried and her second husband honored the memory of this war hero. The knitted socks and the letters sent to Neil were keepsakes which never were a source of conflict to the second marriage. There is just something about war and especially World War II which binds a whole generation, Martha said.

Martha was born in Jasper, Alabama on March 3, 1923 to Carl Voigt and Elise Jones. Carl was of German descent and in the course of time the elder Carl Voigt was given an honorary discharge from Kaiser Wilhelm’s military in Germany. When the elder Voigt came to America he was called “Big Daddy.” Big Daddy had a short wave radio by which he kept informed about the events in Germany. When Hitler came to power  in 1933 Big Daddy cried and said “Oh my God, I feel sorry for us and for America.”

Daddy Carl was a china and glassware buyer and seller which took the family from Jasper to Birmingham, Alabama and from there to Port Washington, Long Island until Martha was fifteen years of age. Then it was back to Birmingham and to high school in Ensley. She credits speech teacher Florence  Pass for her interest in public service, history and literature.

War broke out and Martha became Miss World War II. Young men began to enlist and young women went to the factories. Martha went to Brookley Field in Mobile to help modify bomber aircraft. She worked there in ’42 and ’43. In 1943 the USMCWR was authorized by Congress and Martha was off to Camp LeJeune, North  Carolina . There were barracks vacated by disbanded marine paratroopers and the women took over for thirteen weeks engaged in physical exercise, drilling, map reading, and non-combat weaponry. The next stop was Washington, D.C.

She left North Carolina as a private and rose up to Sergeant with a monthly pay of seventy-five dollars per month. They lodged in Henderson Hall in Arlington, Virginia. On time off they visited Walter  Reid Hospital to help with the paraplegics. They went over to Maryland to assist the farmers in harvesting crops. They read Ernie Pile’s report from the frontlines of Europe and in their rare spare time they went to the Capitol and watched the Senate and the House in session.

Living and working in Arlington was a sad experience also. Every day there were the military funeral caissons, rifle fire, and taps. Finally came Victory in Japan Day (VJ Day). “When the lights come on again—all over the world—when the boys come home again—all over the world….” became a reality. There are still tears in her eyes when she describes catching a bus and going down  the hill around the Pentagon and getting into full view of Washington to see the lights come on which had been off for four years. Few people had that awesome experience, Martha said.

Often the memories flood in for Martha. There is October  of  ’44 when she met Neil and they dined at a little French Restaurant. They were married in November: she was 21. In ’45 she was a widow at 22. Of course she wanted a long life with Neil yet she would never regret their brief time together. She knows that wherever people were during the War, they have powerful memories of the time. They can tell you where they were on December 7, 1941 and August 14, 1945.

Martha left Washington. Her name is on a woman’s memorial list at the gate of Arlington Cemetery as a member of the USMCWR. In 1945 there were over sixteen thousand of these young women in the Corps. By February ’46 only two hundred remained. The mustering out was quick and efficient.

Martha came home, married and raised a family, one son and two daughters.  She served the Social Security System as an employee congressional liaison from 1961 to 1984. One of her duties was to protect the system by seeing that clients were not overpaid. On the positive side she worked at resolving the problems of her clients.

Martha Hosey has served on the Board of Registrars and as a member of the Executive Committe of the Baldwin County Republican Party. She has not slowed nor has her will diminished.